My best wishes for success are extended to the 215 participants in the 2008 Healthy Hancock Lose and Win Program.

Based on the book “The Town That Lost a Ton,” Lose and Win “is sponsored by a coalition working together to improve the health of residents in Hancock County,” said Iris Simon of Maine Coast Memorial Hospital in Ellsworth.

In an e-mail Simon said that 28 teams “are working to reduce their accumulated weight of 40,870” pounds and are off to a good start in the 10-week program by losing “an impressive 372.5 pounds.”

Simon said “Tons of Fun” of Bucksport was the top weight-losing team and was awarded the Victory Stick for the first week, with “The Hannaford Heavyweights” and the “Coastal Med Tech Dream Team” following.

Among the program participants at the Deer Isle-Stonington location, the “Burnt Cove String Beans” were the winners and “took home the lobster buoy for the week,” Simon wrote, adding that the “Pound Puppies” received “the pink sneaker by accumulating the most minutes of physical activity” for that week.

Meetings begin at 6 p.m. at each site. Deer Isle-Stonington participants meet Wednesdays and Ellsworth participants meet Thursdays.

A complete schedule of events and more information about Lose and Win are available at www.mainehospital.org or by calling Health-Link at 667-2474.

Doug Beck of the Maine Recreation and Park Association has announced the registration period for the first in a series of family-centered, outdoor recreation events, “Take It Outside,” has been extended to Thursday, Jan. 17. The series is being hosted with the Maine Department of Conservation.

The program features sledding, cross-country skiing and other outdoor events. The first “Take It Outside” will be offered Saturday, Jan. 19, at Aroostook State Park in Presque Isle and Mt. Blue State Park in Weld.

Registration is $5 per person at participating recreation departments in Bangor, Brewer, Easton, Farmington, Mars Hill, Presque Isle and Washburn.

Registration is required for the Searsport Historical Society 2nd Annual Scrapbook Crop 9 a.m.-8 p.m., Saturday, Jan. 19, at Curtis Hall, which is attached to the Searsport First Congregational Church on Church Street.

The $35 registration fee includes coffee and tea, lunch and dinner.

Proceeds benefit the restoration and maintenance of the SHS headquarters, the Crary-Carlin-Coleman House.

Applications and registration forms are available by calling Karen Kelley, 548-2947, and leaving a message, or by e-mailing Jiffy Kelly-Young at scottjiffy@roadrunner.com.

Ilze Petersons of the Peace & Justice Center of Eastern Maine e-mailed that that organization is sponsoring a free “Keeping the Dream Alive Spoken Word Cafe” from 6 to 8 p.m. Monday, Jan. 21, at the Keith Anderson Community Center on Bennoch Road in Orono.

The event is in honor of the birthday of Dr. Martin Luther King.

Attendees should “bring a dish for the potluck community supper which will be followed by spoken word presentations,” Petersons wrote.

“The theme for the evening is race, injustice and our vision for a better tomorrow.

“Come, read a poem, the lyrics to a song, or a piece that you feel conveys your experience and dreams for a better society in the future.”

Your contribution should be 10 minutes or less, or you may choose just to listen.

“We look forward to a fun, interesting and inclusive event,” Petersons wrote.

For more information, call 942-9343.

Fran Trefts, president of Downeast Senior College, left a voice mail message of an error in the information about the Sandwich Seminars being offered seniors each Monday in February.

The day for the first event was correct, but the date was wrong.

The first Sandwich Seminar begins at noon Monday, Feb. 4, at the handicapped-accessible Ellsworth City Hall and features Ellsworth psychiatrist Dr. Barbara Reeve.

The seminars are free and open to the public. Beverages will be provided, and you may bring a sandwich.

Sandwich Seminars continue at the same time each Monday in February.

For more information, call Trefts at 422-2259 or e-mail frub2@verizon.net.

At Christmas time, the 20-plus seniors who attend Robert & Mary’s Place in Ellsworth were “provided lovely gifts by members of the Ellsworth Business and Professional Women’s Club,” wrote Milton Bray of Robert & Mary’s Place.

“We, the staff, thank them very much for their generous and continued support of our program.”

Robert & Mary’s Place is an adult-day program for older people with memory loss or confusion.

Joni Averill, Bangor Daily News, P.O. Box 1329, Bangor 04402; javerill@bangordailynews.net; 990-8288.